Sony ‘very pleased’ to have avoided Microsoft’s Kinect woes

With Microsoft having been forced to backtrack on its decision to bundle Kinect as a mandatory Xbox One peripheral, Sony has stated it is ‘very pleased’ to have avoided a similar pitfall.

Despite the Xbox One having originally hit retailers with a boxed Kinect in tow, a high price point and low sales figures saw the American manufacturer rethink its standpoint. Having cut the motion-tracking peripheral from the equation, the Xbox One has been brought in line with the PS4’s £349 price tag.

Now, speaking with TrustedReviews, Sony has reiterated its relief at having taken the correct gamble in whether or not to bundle its PS4 with a PlayStation camera.

“We are pleased that the PlayStation Camera is a significant part of the mix without having to over force it in any way,” Fergal Gara, Managing Director of Sony Computer Entertainment UK told us out at E3 2104.

Questioned on his views on Microsoft's change of heart he added: "We are very pleased with the decision we made, going back some time now, to make it an optional accessory. For the player that was a gamer focused decision.”

Although not bundling the PlayStation Camera, Sony highlighted the success of the optional add-on during its E3 press conference earlier this week, an achievement reiterated by the company’s UK head.

“I am not terribly surprised [with how well the PlayStation Camera] has performed. It is just a healthy, additional peripheral sale,” Gara told us.

Although Sony will not discuss exact PlayStation Camera sales, the reality is that the company is struggling to meet demand for the accessory.

“It is performing roughly in line with my expectations and little ahead of global expectations and hence we have a little bit of lag on supply and a bit of catch up to do,” Gara said.

He added: “It does add some value for the gamer but not everyone needs it. Well, nobody needs it but it does add some value and there are new examples coming down the line that will add even more value.”

Despite currently limited user cases, moving forward a PlayStation Camera will be required in order to make use of Sony’s upcoming Virtual Reality headset, Project Mophius.

Gara stated: “As Andy [Sony Computer Entertainment President and CEO, Andrew House] covered quite well, you do require it for Project Mophius and that is a product that is in the pipeline and very exciting.

“It [PlayStation Camera] already has a foothold which makes it easier to introduce a product like Mophius.”